Ronald Reagan stars as children’s book hero

Thanks to Susan Allen, the wife of former Virginia Republican Gov. George Allen, the 40th president gets the kids’ book treatment in, “The Remarkable Ronald Reagan: Cowboy and Commander in Chief.” (The book is dedicated to her husband, “whose partnership in everything has provided a lifetime of adventures.”)

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“We thought about how important it was that the next generation understand Ronald Reagan’s story and how it changed not just America but the world,” Allen told POLITICO. “I think that’s the story that kids need to hear today. They need more heroes. They need American heroes. Ronald Reagan was one of them.”

The book opens with, “Do you ever wish you could grow up to be a football player or a movie star? Maybe you imagine yourself as governor of your state or even president of the United States. Do you ever dream of riding horses like a cowboy or cowgirl? Our 40th president, Ronald Reagan, had those dreams too.” It goes on to track his childhood (“Their father taught them to respect all people”), his teenage years (“As a lifeguard, Dutch rescued seventy-seven people from drowning!”) and acting (“In another movie, ‘Bedtime for Bonzo,’ he co-starred with a chimpanzee!”).

Allen also tracks Reagan’s time in office, writing, “President Reagan became known as the Great Communicator, because he always seemed to have the right words to say at the right time. He spoke often of America’s greatness.”

Allen told POLITICO that she thinks that Reagan’s legacy can still be valuable to a modern Republican Party undergoing a bit of rejiggering.

“The basic philosophy of Reagan can continue to survive,” Allen said. “We need other voices out there working towards the goals that Reagan set — free-enterprise zones, keeping taxes low, getting rid of our corporate tax — or at least lowering it so we’re not the worst in the world for doing business.”

Allen said the country needs other voices to carry that mission forward, and she thinks that will happen within the GOP.

“We’re a party made up of a lot of different philosophies, but Reagan’s principles can be guiding principles, and I think that strengthens our Republican Party, for sure. … I think it’s still a winning philosophy for the Republican Party while, at the same time, we can recognize people have varied backgrounds. Reagan used to say, ‘If we can agree 80 percent of the time, we can still be friends.’”